The Garden Mix

Nationally renowned garden expert Melinda Myers helps everyday gardeners find success and ease in the garden through her Melinda’s Garden Moments radio segments. Melinda shares “must have” tips that hold the key to gardening success, learned through her more than 30 years of horticulture experience. Listeners from across the country find her gardener friendly, practical approach to gardening both refreshing and informative! On this page, Melinda shares some more extensive garden tips, which expand on the information provided in her one-minute radio segments.

New tips are added throughout each month, providing timely step-by-step tips on what you need to do next in your garden! Visit Melinda’s website www.melindamyers.com for more gardening tips, how-to videos, podcasts and answers to your questions.

It's not your common spirea found in many commercial and home landscapes; but rather it's less utilized relative and North American native shrub known as steeplebush or hardhack (Spiraeatomentosa).
This adaptable shrub is hardy in zones 3 to 8. It prefers full sun, acidic sandy soils with wet to moist conditions, but it will tolerate light shade and a wide range of soils.

Steeplebush grows 2 to 4 feet tall and much wider as its suckering nature allows it to form colonies. This makes it a great choice for pond side plantings, hedges, natural areas, rain gardens and bank stabilization.

The spires of pink flowers appear from mid-summer into fall. Light deadheading will encourage more bloom. The attractive flowers help attract beneficial insects like bees and butterflies. It's a nectar source for the rare Karner Blue butterfly and the leaves are a favorite food for several caterpillars and moths.

A bit more information: Another native spirea, Meadowseet (Spiraea alba), produces spires of white flowers and is hardy in zones 3 to 7. It makes a great cut flower and is a butterfly favorite.

Buckthorn, honeysuckle and Tree of Heaven are just a few of the landscape plants that have left the garden and invaded our natural spaces.
These aggressive plants outcompete and crowd out our native plants, destroying the food and habitat needed by wildlife. They also invade our gardens, crowding out desirable plants.

Many gardeners are reluctant to remove them as they provide privacy or screen a bad view. Plant a garden or hedge to take its place and get busy removing these invaders.

Pull or dig small seedlings as soon as they appear. Or remove a 6 inch strip of bark around the base of the plant.
You can also cut the plant to the ground in fall and treat the stump with a brush killer recommended for this purpose. Or paint the bottom 12 inches of the trunk with a brush killer. This prevents the roots from re-sprouting.
As always read and follow label directions carefully.

A bit more information: Aggressive plants, unlike invasive plants, crowd out their neighboring plants, but do not leave the bounds of the landscape. Avoid aggressive plants, if space and time are limited. Or limit aggressive plants spread by growing them in small contained beds or containers. And do not plant invasive plants that will take you years to eliminate in your yard and nearby natural areas. For a list of the more common invasive plants, click here.

Add some fragrance to your indoor and outdoor gardens with Mexican mint also known as menthol plant or Cuban oregano.
This fast grower quickly reaches a height of 6 to 18 inches and a width of three feet. Grow it in containers, as a groundcover or in the herb or flower garden.

This member of the mint family thrives indoors in bright light with a bit of afternoon shade in hot sunny windows. Outdoors grow it in dappled shade with fertile well-drained soil.

The aromatic foliage provides a nice backdrop for the lilac-pink, mauve or white flowers that appear in summer.

Start new plants by dividing mature plants into smaller pieces or from stem cuttings. This is a great way to enjoy the plant indoors and out. Start cuttings several weeks before its time to move them outdoors. This plant is hardy in zones 9 to 11 and thrives in warm air and soil.

A bit more information: The fragrant menthol mint plant is a cousin to the long time favorite Swedish ivy (Plectranthus australis). This trailing houseplant is grown for its foliage. It also makes an attractive spiller (trailing plant) in container gardens.

Add some fragrance to your indoor and outdoor gardens with Mexican mint also known as menthol plant or Cuban oregano.
This fast grower quickly reaches a height of 6 to 18 inches and a width of three feet. Grow it in containers, as a groundcover or in the herb or flower garden.

This member of the mint family thrives indoors in bright light with a bit of afternoon shade in hot sunny windows. Outdoors grow it in dappled shade with fertile well-drained soil.

The aromatic foliage provides a nice backdrop for the lilac-pink, mauve or white flowers that appear in summer.

Start new plants by dividing mature plants into smaller pieces or from stem cuttings. This is a great way to enjoy the plant indoors and out. Start cuttings several weeks before its time to move them outdoors. This plant is hardy in zones 9 to 11 and thrives in warm air and soil.

A bit more information: The fragrant menthol mint plant is a cousin to the long time favorite Swedish ivy (Plectranthus australis). This trailing houseplant is grown for its foliage. It also makes an attractive spiller (trailing plant) in container gardens.

Many gardeners know and grow bee balm (Monarda dydima), but its beautiful mildew resistant cousin spotted bee balm is often overlooked.
You'll know it's a bee balm by its unique, almost Dr. Seuss-like flowers. The small creamy yellow flowers appear between layers of white to lavender leaf bracts. The flowers appear throughout the summer and even longer with a bit of deadheading.

You'll also find various bees, butterflies and beneficial insects visiting this native plant. The beneficial insects feed on or parasitize aphids, whiteflies and mealybugs helping to minimize the damage done by these garden pests.

Grow spotted bee balm in full sun or partial shade and well- drained soil. It is drought tolerant once established, resistant to powdery mildew and the deer tend to leave it be.

Use this zone 3 to 8 hardy perennial in wildflower or perennial gardens or to naturalize a sunny, fast draining slope.

A bit more information: Reduce mildew problems on Monarda dydima with proper siting and care. Grow it in full sun with good air circulation. Thin the plantings in spring to increase light and air penetration. Then mask infested leaves with slightly shorter nearby plantings.

Put those empty wine bottles to work as containers for cacti and succulents.

All you need is an empty bottle, a well-drained potting mix and a few small succulents. Cut an opening into the side of the bottle or purchase a precut bottle.
Place gravel on the bottom for added interest. Keep in mind that once excess water fills the gravel base the soil can become water logged and lead to root rot. So water carefully.

Fill with a well drained potting or cacti and succulent mix. My friends and authors of Planting Designs for Cactus and Succulents recommend mixing dark horticulture sand for drainage into a potting mix without perlite. You'll have a more aesthetically pleasing display.

Plant your wine bottle garden and place on a support to prevent your garden from rolling off the table. One simple method uses two corks and strong wire to create a cradle for your bottle garden.

A bit more information: For more ideas on displaying cacti and succulents see Planting Designs for Cactus and Succulents by Sharon Asakawa and John Bagnasco with Shaun Buchanan and Robyn Foreman.

Before you head out to the garden to do a bit of pruning, make sure you have the right tool for the job.

Use a bypass hand pruner for deadheading and pruning woody stems up to ¾ of an inch in diameter. These pruners have two sharp blades like scissors, resulting in a clean cut that closes quickly. Look for a quality pruner with replaceable blades.
Employ a bypass lopper to extend your reach when pruning small trees, shrubs and roses. Most loppers cut branches up to 2 inches in diameter. Those with longer handles give you greater leverage. And some have ratcheting devices to increase the cutting power with less effort on your part.
Invest in a small pruning saw for larger stems and branches. Foldable pruning saws have short blades to reach into tight places. The blade tucks into the handle for safekeeping and to reduce storage space.A bit more information: A cordless reciprocating saw with the thin pruning blade allows great access and increased power. This is helpful when pruning suckering shrubs and other narrowly spaced stems and branches.

Add a little purple to your green this St Patrick's Day by planting a burgundy shamrock plant, botanically known as Oxalis 'Triangularis'.
This beauty makes a great indoor plant or addition to the woodland garden, container plantings and flower border outdoors. Burgundy shamrock plant grows 6 to 12 inches tall and wide. The burgundy leaves are topped by dainty pale pink flowers, adding to its ornamental appeal.

Grow it indoors in a cool brightly lit location. Keep the soil slightly moist. As the leaves begin to wither and die, stop watering and allow the plant to go dormant. Begin watering and fertilizing once new growth appears in about 2 to 4 weeks.

Outdoors grow it in full sun for best color and bloom or partial shade with moist but well-drained soil. It's hardy outdoors in zones 6 to 12 and can be grown as an annual in other areas.

A bit more information: Nastic movements in plants are a response to some environmental stimulus. Oxalis is a photonastic response plant. This means the leaves open when light is present during the day and close at night.

Clear a spot on the windowsill and make room for geraniums, fuchsias, lantanas and any other plants that were stored in a cool dark location indoors for winter.
Plant any bareroot plants in a container large enough to accommodate the roots. Move potbound plants into a slightly larger container as needed. Use a quality well-drained potting mix and set the plants at the same depth they were growing before.

Prune stems back to 4 to 6 inches above the soil surface. Only prune the upper branches on tree forms of these plants. This encourages thicker stems and more compact growth.

Move the plants to a sunny window or under artificial light and begin watering. Water thoroughly whenever the top few inches of soil are crumbly and moist.

Once the plants start to grow, you can fertilize with a dilute solution of any flowering houseplant fertilizer.

A bit more information: Geraniums and other annuals grown as houseplants for winter will also benefit from a spring trim. Pruning plants back to 4-6 inches will encourage thicker more compact growth. Fertilize these plants once the new growth begins. Your plants will be full and ready to bloom in time for the growing season.

Increase the health and longevity of your trees by reducing the risk of girdling roots.
These roots encircle the trunk and interfere with the flow of water, nutrients and food reserves between the roots and the leaves.

Always check for and loosen circling roots and remove girdling roots at planting. Take extra time when examining the roots of lindens, maples, magnolias and pines that are more prone to developing girdling roots.

Dig the planting hole 2 to 5 times wider than the rootball. Roughen the sides of the planting hole to allow the trees roots easy access to the surrounding soil

Plant trees with the rootflare, the place where the tree roots flare away from the trunk, at or slightly above the soil surface.

Don't pile mulch over the trunk of the tree. This encourages adventitious roots to form on the mulch covered trunk and develop into girdling roots.

A bit more information: Girdling roots on established trees may be visible or occur several inches below the soil surface. Trees with girdling roots can have a flattened crown, shorter branches or flatter trunk on the girdled side of the tree or show signs of general decline. Certified professional arborists have had some success managing girdling roots on established trees.

This old time favorite thrives in cooler temperatures. Extend your enjoyment by starting seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last spring frost. Gardeners in mild climates can plant seeds outdoors in fall for winter or early spring bloom. Soak seeds overnight or scratch the hard seed coat with a nail file to increase sprouting success.

Grow sweet peas in a sunny location or area with light shade in the afternoon. Water the soil thoroughly when the top few inches are crumbly and moist.

Remove the flowers as they fade to keep the plant looking its best and producing more fragrant blooms. Plants decline in hot humid weather, so have a heat tolerant replacement ready as needed. Avoid problems by planting sweet peas in a different location the following year.

A bit more information: Perennial sweet peas (Lathyrus latifolius) are hardy in zones 3 or 4 to 8. They grow into 4 to 8 feet tall vines and thrive in full sun to light shade and well-drained soil. The flowers are beautiful, but not fragrant. It has been found to be invasive in some areas of North America.

Move overcrowded seedlings to larger containers once they have two sets of true leaves.
The first leaves that appear are rather indistinct and are called seed leaves. The next set of leaves look more like the mature plant's leaves and are called true leaves. Once the next set of true leaves forms, it is time to transplant overcrowded seedlings.

Use a fork or spoon to carefully lift out the seedling. Clusters of seedlings can be dug and carefully teased apart before planting into individual pots. Be careful not to pinch or damage the young tender stems.

Place seedlings in their own clean container filled with moist sterile potting mix. Plant the young plants at the same depth they were growing in the original container.

Continue to grow them in a sunny window or under artificial lights and water thoroughly and often enough to keep the soil slightly moist.

A bit more information: Thin seedlings started in individual containers as needed. If you planted several seeds in each small container, remove all but the healthiest one. Prune the weaker seedlings to ground level, so the remaining seedling can develop into a strong transplant for the garden.

Avoid future problems by keeping invasive beauties out of your landscape.
Several common garden vines have escaped the boundaries of our gardens and moved into the surrounding natural spaces. These invaders crowd out native plants, disrupting the ecosystems needed by the birds, bees and other wildlife.

English ivy has long been used as a groundcover or trained on stone fences and buildings. This vigorous plant crawls over the ground or up and over trees and shrubs, leading to the death of these plants.

Japanese honeysuckle is adaptable, allowing it to invade the forest floor, roadside green spaces and wetlands. It girdles small trees by twining around their trunks.

Oriental bittersweet looks similar to the American bittersweet, but should not be planted. This vigorous vine engulfs and can eventually kill nearby plants.

Give the leaves a gentle pet and enjoy the lemon, rose, apple, peppermint or pine fragrance. Place the plants in areas where you brush by the leaves or can easily give them a pat to release and enjoy the fragrance.

Though grown for the fragrant leaves, these plants will produce attractive, but less showy flowers than the popular bedding geranium. Both are truly Pelargoniums, but most gardeners know them by their common name of geranium.

Grow these as houseplants in a sunny window or a sunny location outdoors during frost-free weather. Scented geraniums are hardy in zones 10 and 11 and must be moved indoors for the winter in most areas.

Use a quality potting mix for indoor plantings or grow them outdoors in well-drained soil for best results. Remove the faded flowers and pinch back the stems as needed.

A bit more information: Start new plants from cuttings taken from healthy plants. Take a 4-inch piece of the stem with leaves, remove any flowers, and root. Or use trimmings made when pruning back your plant. For more details, listen to my audio tip on Starting New Plants from Cuttings.

Bieber's Roast Airs
It seems like the roast that would never end, but the Comedy Central roast of Justin Bieber finally aired last night.
The folks at ABC News provide a two-minute summary on this morning's "The Skinny."
Check it out for a clean breakdown of the show.
If you believe the clips, it looks like the Biebs had some of the best lines of the night.

Meet the New Daily Show Host
Comedy Central announced yesterday the replacement for Jon Stewart on The Daily Show.
Just as everyone expected, the new host is... Trevor Noah?
Um, sorry, who?
Trevor's relatively new to The Daily Show.
Heck, he's relatively new to the US, having arrived at both spots back in December - four months ago - from his native South Africa.
In fact, back then, he made his debut appearance on The Daily Show as a correspondent.
Now, suddenly, he's the new host. As others scramble to find out more about him, why not just sit back and watch that debut..

Oh No He Didn't...
Justin Bieber took the stage as a back-up singer with Ariana Grande in Miami over the weekend.
His job: help her with "Love Me Harder."
And he couldn't do it. He flubbed the lines, then gave up and started dancing on stage and greeting fans to cover for his failed memory.
He apologized repeatedly to Ariana on stage.. And he did so on Instagram afterwards as well.
Accepted or not, I'll bet it's the last time he's invited to be Ariana's back-up...
Had fun with u Ariana, even tho I forgot all the words haha
A photo posted by Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) on Mar 28, 2015 at 8:46pm PDT

The Beginning of The New World
Jay Z enlisted some top-level friends to help him announce his new streaming music service, Tidal.
Beyonce was there, of course, and Kanye. But so was Madonna, and Nicki Minaj, and Jason Aldean, and Chris Martin, and more.
Dozens of artists, in the room and on-line, to hear about and lend support to Jay Z's game changing idea.
His plan is to get consumers to pay for music they're used to streaming for free.
You laugh, but it worked for Netflix.
The man could really be on to something big here...

Sound of Music... Peter Pan... The Wiz?
NBC announced plans to produce another live musical right around Thanksgiving.
Two years ago, it was Sound of Music starring Carrie Underwood.
Last year, it was Peter Pan starring Alison Williams.
This year, it's The Wiz.
Right. The Wiz. The urban twist on the classic Wizard of Oz.
Debuted on Broadway in the mid-70s, Turned into a movie in 1978, starring Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow, and Richard Pryor as the Wiz.
Not exactly a classic.
But, it will be the third installment in NBC's franchise - for lack of a better term.
Already, suggestions are being made for the casting.
Beyonce as Glinda. Pharrell as the Tin Man.
Not seeing Kanye mentioned anywhere - but he'll trying to pick up an Emmy for it anyway...
Meanwhile, here's a sampling of the King of Pope as the Scarecrow.

Something Old Really Works
Here's a head-scratcher: some scientists in England have found a way to kill the hospital superbug known as MRSA.
Great news, you say. How did they do it?
Simple. They cooked up a compound from a recipe found in a book about 1000 years old.
The book is called Bald's Leecbook, and the treatment is for styes.
Take cropleek and garlic, of both equal quantities, pound them well together… take wine and bullocks gall, mix with the leek… let it stand nine days in the brass vessel…
The scientists followed the directions and when they tested it, found that it had a 90% success rate in killing the bacteria generally blamed for MRSA.
This could turn into something.
Up next: applying Game of Thrones strategies to current warfare.
Step 1: get a dragon...

Deer Season is Open
The folks at Disney have been busy turning cartoon characters into live-action characters.
We've had Maleficent, and most recently, Cinderella.
So why not take the same approach with Bambi?
Great idea, and played up perfectly by the folks at Saturday Night Live with a little help - okay, a lot of help - from Dwayne "The Rock" Johnston.
Check it out!

And This is Why I Don't Go on Rollercoasters...
Opening day for the Coney Island Cyclone, one of the world's most historic wooden rollercoasters, didn't go so well for the first riders of the season.
At the top of its first hill, just before the first drop, the coaster stopped dead in its tracks.
Riders were stranded, and had to be walked down by emergency personnel.
Like rollercoasters aren't already scary enough, now this happens?
But what do you want to bet that most of them will climb back aboard as soon as the ride's running again?

Wait a Minute, What?
Furious 7 - the seventh installment in the Fast & Furious franchise - is set to open up in theaters in a couple of weeks.
The hype for it has been huge.
Naturally, everyone thinks the "7" in the title refers to it being the "seventh" film.
Right?
Wrong. According to the director, James Wan, says he wanted to actually spell out the "seven" in the title, as an homage to Seven Samurai.
It's about seven warriors, I guess, and not about counting how many films there've been.
Who knew?

Behind the Times?
President Obama sat down last week to talk with David Simon, the creator of The Wire, the critically-acclaimed TV show.
The idea was to discuss what Simon observed about crime in the inner city that drove him to create the show.
The guy's a former cop, so it's probably a valuable chat.
But those observations are over a dozen years old. The Wire ran between 2002 and 2008.
Relevant? Or just an opportunity for the First Fan to talk to the guy who created one of his favorite shows?
What do you think?

Unintentional Photo Bomb
Kim Kardashian must have been having an off day.
There was a camera pointed her way, and she didn't manage to strike a pose.
Instead, it sort of looks like she's picking her toes Or perhaps grabbing for her pocketbook.
Kanye, on the other side, looks so very Kanye-ish. And ironically, he's the one showing sideboob in this picture, not his wife.
Go figure...
Lunch with Lilou at Nobu!! #Lilou #NobuSundays #greatcompany #Carolin #papaB @casiebamford @malibubuffy @anneysenring @jasoncampbellmalibu
A photo posted by alibambam (@alibambam) on Mar 22, 2015 at 4:48pm PDT

Arnold's Human Side
Arnold Schwarzenegger has a new movie coming out called Maggie.
It's a zombie flick, but more than that.
The advance buzz on it is pretty good, and no one seems happier about it than Arnold himself.
Check out the post to his Facebook page late last week... (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));
I'm really proud of my new film, Maggie. This is the most human zombie film you’ve ever seen, and it’s the most human...
Posted by Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday, March 25, 2015

What is Wrong with People?
A meteorologist on Global News News Hour Plus in Canada took to the airwaves last Thursday to discuss a hate letter.
Kristi Gordon is pregnant, and got a nastygram about the way she looks on the news.
Calling her "gross," the viewer wrote further: “Your front end looks like the Hindenburg and your rear-end looks like a brick sh—house. We now turn off Global."
Actually, she's gotten a few, and she decided to talk about it on the air with the news co-anchors.
The male anchor didn't think they should give the letter any attention. "Haters gonna hate," he said, "as some rapper may have said."
The female anchor corrected him immediately, which is the funniest put-down I've seen in a long while.
Check out the whole thing... Sparks some interesting discussion.

They're Stripes and You've Earned Them
Rachel Hollis is a 32-year-old mom of three, and she's not afraid to wear a bikini to the beach.
She writes a lifestyle blog called The Chic Site, and used it to share an Instagram picture of herself on the beach in a two-piece, and she's inspiring women around the world to celebrate their mom-bods.
"I have stretch marks and I wear a bikini," she wrote. "I have a belly that's permanently flabby from carrying three giant babies and I wear a bikini. My belly button is saggy... (which is something I didn't even know was possible before!!) and I wear a bikini. I wear a bikini because I'm proud of this body and every mark on it."
Check out the picture, and the rest of what she has to say.
I have stretch marks and I wear a bikini. I have a belly that's permanently flabby from carrying three giant babies and I wear a bikini. My belly button is saggy... (which is something I didn't even know was possible before!!) and I wear a bikini. I wear a bikini because I'm proud of this body and every mark on it. Those marks prove that I was blessed enough to carry my babies and that flabby tummy means I worked hard to lose what weight I could. I wear a bikini because the only man who's opinion matters knows what I went through to look this way. That same man says he's never seen anything sexier than my body, marks and all. They aren't scars ladies, they're stripes and you've earned them. Flaunt that body with pride! #HollisHoliday
A photo posted by Rachel Hollis (@msrachelhollis) on Mar 21, 2015 at 9:21am PDT

Thanks, Obama!
This could be one of the most bizarre stories ever.
A woman is suing the City of New York after she was locked up unnecessarily in a psychiatric ward for eight days following the confiscation of her car by the authorities.
She admits she got a little high-strung while trying to get her BMW back from the police, but when she tried to prove what an upstanding citizen she was by showing that Barack Obama followed her on Twitter, she got locked up.
Here's the kicker - turns out that @BarackObama does follow her on Twitter - except it's not POTUS, it's one of his campaign non-profit organizations.
Still, eight days in the psych ward and a bill for $13,000 for the stay seems a bit much, don't you think?

Pranking for Lenovo
Ashton Kutcher's roots are in pranks. You of course remember his Punk'd on MTV.
And he's also the pitchman for Lenovo computers.
So why not take the two and put them together Down Under?
Great idea. And that's exactly what he did.
Watch what happens when Ashton goes undercover in an Australian department store, pitching the new Lenovo tablets to unsuspecting customers...

Got a Drone and a Lot of Spare Time?
It's amazing how inventive some folks can be.
Take Oliver C... He's a YouTuber, probably from France, who designs flying objects with the help of drones.
His latest creation is an imperial star destroyer from Star Wars.
All you need is some foam, some aluminum and a remote-control drone, and you too could be the king of the geeks in your neighborhood...

Son of Coach?
NBC announced that it has ordered 13 episodes of Coach, starring Craig T. Nelson.
You might remember that Coach, starring Craig T. Nelson, ran on ABC for nine seasons, ending in 1997.
Yes, it's the same show, 18 years later.
It picks up sort of where the original ended. Coach's adopted son is now a coach, and Coach has to deal with that.
No word yet on whether other original cast members will return, since nothing's been written yet.
The whole thing was settled in a pitch meeting... Seems almost too easy, doesn't it?
Here's a fun little clip of Craig T. Nelson meeting the Coach from the Toyota ads a couple of years ago, talking about that show they both loved so much...

Now Playing, Sauce Castillo!
The people who do closed captioning for sporting events have a rough job.
Hear it and type it, hear it and type it.
They do their best to get it right, but sometimes, they're blunders are epic.
Take this one. Nik Stauskas is a guard for the Sacramento Kings in the NBA.
Except according to the closed-caption operator the other night, his name is actually SAUCE CASTILLO.
It could easily have been one of those things no one noticed, but someone did, and now it's Nik's new name.
Check out the video on the Kings' website. And check out what Nik had to say about it on Twitter, where the name has gone a little viral...
Wait what does "Sauce Castillo" mean? Since when was that my nickname lol!! 😂😂
— Nik Stauskas (@NStauskas11) March 26, 2015

That Knot is Tied
Country star Jason Aldean tied the knot last Saturday with Brittany Kerr.
Yesterday, Brittany made it official by posting a picture of herself wearing a "Wifey" shirt to Instagram.
❤️
A photo posted by @brittanylkerr on Mar 25, 2015 at 12:45pm PDT
The wedding was held in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
And in the You-Can't-Make-This-Stuff-Up Department, the nuptials were officiated by Willie Robertson.
Yes, that Willie Robertson - the one from Duck Dynasty.

Nice to Meet You - You Are Dismissed
I guess everyone has a breaking point.
It's got to be rough when you're on a publicity junket halfway around the world and reporters start asking silly questions.
Take for instance Cate Blanchett.
She was in Australia on a show called The Project to promote her new film, Cinderella.
The report kept asking off-topic questions, and Cate had to keep steering him back to the purpose of her visit.
And then he asked how she got a cat in the movie to do what she wanted it to do.
And that's when she snapped. Check it out.

Defect & Head for the Border
Taco Bell launched a new ad campaign yesterday to promote its breakfast menu.
And it's taking aim right between the eyes of a certain clown who routinely provides the "same same same" breakfast.
The long-form ad looks as gray as anything George Orwell ever envisioned, and it has a feel like the Divergent films.
Check it out. Unless you're afraid of clowns. Then you might want to think twice...

And Now, It's Two Direction
You can thank One Direction for the high-pitched wailing coming from your local high school yesterday afternoon.
That's when they made it official: Zayn Malik is leaving the group, and it's permanent.
A week ago, Zayn stopped touring, saying he was stressed.
Now, he wants to be a "normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight."
I'm sure that will happen...
Meanwhile, One Direction will continue to tour and record without Zayn.
Which is a pretty normal reaction for a bunch of 22-year-olds, don't you think?

A for Effort, But We'll Call This a Fail
You've got to give this guy credit.
A motorist traveling on Interstate 5 outside Tacoma, Washington was using the car-pool lane.
To legally do that, you have to actually have at least one passenger.
This guy did - except it wasn't a real passenger. It was a cardboard cutout of the Most Interesting Man in the World.
You know, the white-bearded guy from the Dos Equis ads?
A state trooper noticed, and pulled the guy over.
The punishment: $124 fine.
The reward: this very cool tweet from the Washington State Patrol.
I don't always violate the HOV lane law...but when I do, I get a $124 ticket! We'll give him an A for creativity! 👮👍 pic.twitter.com/hNbQDuBWfc
— Trooper Guy Gill (@wspd1pio) March 24, 2015

Native Steeplebush Adds Beauty and Attracts Butterflies
It's not your common spirea found in many commercial and home landscapes; but rather it's less utilized relative and North American native shrub known as steeplebush or hardhack (Spiraea tomentosa).
This adaptable shrub is hardy in zones 3 to 8. It prefers full sun, acidic sandy soils with wet to moist conditions, but it will tolerate light shade and a wide range of soils.
Steeplebush grows 2 to 4 feet tall and much wider as its suckering nature allows it to form colonies. This makes it a great choice for pond side plantings, hedges, natural areas, rain gardens and bank stabilization.
The spires of pink flowers appear from mid-summer into fall. Light deadheading will encourage more bloom. The attractive flowers help attract beneficial insects like bees and butterflies. It's a nectar source for the rare Karner Blue butterfly and the leaves are a favorite food for several caterpillars and moths.
A bit more information: Another native spirea, Meadowseet (Spiraea alba), produces spires of white flowers and is hardy in zones 3 to 7. It makes a great cut flower and is a butterfly favorite.
For more gardening tips, how-to videos, podcasts and more, visit www.melindamyers.com